Cutting Winter Fuel Payments would be an insult to millions of older people - Ros Altmann

Constant threats to cut parts of pensioner support and focus on more means-testing unsettles millions of pensioners with little or no income other than State Pension and benefits.

Latest reports that the Government is considering stripping all pensioners of their Winter Fuel Payments and only helping those who claim means-tested benefits are an insult to millions of older people.

The Winter Fuel Payment was introduced as a temporary measure, but has never been taken away, as have other pensioner benefits such as the Christmas Bonus.

The threat to remove the Winter Fuel Payment, following on from threats to remove the triple lock, is the latest example of politicians trying desperately to cut public spending, by tinkering with pensioner benefits.

The debate about State Pension costs, triple lock, ageing society, expenditure on social care or the National Health Service for older people has filled so many headlines, but each time there are studies suggesting that the UK cannot afford to offer its pensioners a decent level of post-retirement support, after they have contributed to the country for decades, the intergenerational tensions increase. That is not healthy for society.

Politicians have meddled for too long, and it is time for a carefully considered cross party review of all aspects of pensioners’ lives and future public spending on State Pensions and other benefits.

Politicians have added bits and pieces to sweeten the pensioner vote, but once they’ve been introduced, it seems they are never removed due to fears of losing the pensioner vote.

Such electoral ‘bribes’ have been added into the welfare system for the past twenty years and have left us with a system that is far too complex and far more costly than necessary.

The current welfare state has far too many different add-on benefits for pensioners, most are tax-free and therefore worth far more to pensioners with the highest incomes than to those who are poorer.

A cross-party review of State Pensions and all other pensioner benefits would consider whether we still want to have to have Christmas bonuses, Cold Weather Payments, Warm Homes Discounts, Winter Fuel Payments, Cost of Living payments, Age Additions and a host of pensioner benefits which each cost money to administer separately.

And why should so many pensioner benefits be tax-free?

With an ageing population it is of course valid to consider the cost of pensioner support, but that needs to be done in a comprehensive and careful way, not through kite-flying ahead of an election to test the public reaction.

Pensioners in this country deserve to be treated with dignity, not used as political footballs.

Baroness Ros Altmann is a British life peer and former pensions minister. She served under David Cameron when he was Prime Minister.